Bluebird Music Fest bringing a flock of folk and strings to Boulder

This weekend, a flock of folk musicians will migrate to Macky Auditorium on the University of Colorado Boulder campus to usher in the fifth annual Bluebird Music Festival. Much like the medium-sized, cyan-plumed and mostly insectivorous thrush from which the festival hails its name, the Bluebird Music Festival will return at the height of spring to deliver listeners some sweet tunes — and maybe a story or two along the journey.

Unlike the tunes of the soaring bluebird, attendees of the festival can look forward to hearing songs with more than three notes.

In fact, attendees can look forward to more than just music. This year’s lineup of entertainment once again features Strings & Stories, the cozy concert series that has become a staple of the weekend.

“A feather in the festival’s cap,” organizer Travis Albright calls the intimate shows.

Strings & Stories is Bluebird’s version of VH1’s Storytellers, in which artists share a selection of songs from their catalog and regale audience members with a storytelling session of how those songs came to be.

According to Albright, Strings & Stories is what sets Bluebird apart from other music festivals, creating a cozy, behind-the-scenes feel for both artists and attendees.

“I try to curate the weekend with a lot of performers who know each other, have played with each other before, or would like to play together. It always feels like hanging out in a huge living room with friends and family,” Albright said. Albright is the executive director of Boulder County’s Future Arts Foundation, a nonprofit that boosts arts and music among youth. The festival’s proceeds will benefit FAF.

This year’s festival lineup leads with three-time Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter Ben Harper, known for his masterful and thought-provoking lyricism. Harper transcends and blends genres, combining blues, rock, folk, soul and reggae into one marvelous discography.

The last time that Harper graced Boulder with his guitar was nearly 15 years ago. Harper was a performer at the CU Early Vote Rally in 2008 where University of Colorado Boulder students marched in support of Barack Obama and early voting.  Both fans — and fellow Bluebird performers — are looking forward to Harper’s return.

“Ben Harper is a big deal,” said Boulder-based musician Bob Barrick, who will perform at the weekend festival. “My high school friend, Sam, would always play his CDs while we cruised around central Indiana. I love the simple sincerity in his songwriting. You’ve gotta be truly fearless to write songs that cut like his do.”

Barrick, a folk singer and poet, will take the stage alongside Brooklyn-based musician Joshua Lee Turner on Sunday during Strings & Stories at Macky Auditorium on the CU Boulder campus. The duo, whose catchy covers and originals can be found on YouTube — will be performing for the first time together in seven years, and for the very first time together at the Bluebird Festival.

Although for Barrick, this festival is a well-known entity.

“I have been volunteering with the festival since 2018, doing things like taking tickets, selling merch, and even standing in the aisles as security,” Barrick said. “Frankly, I wasn’t enforcing much because I always had my eyes set on the stage. Bluebird’s got this grassroots, ‘Newport-of-the-West’ sort of vibe that I adore, and I knew Josh would, too. So, here we are, getting called up to the big leagues.”

Another band making its Bluebird debut is Heavy Gus. The trio features The Lumineers touring pianist Stelth Ulvang, Blind Pilot drummer Ryan Dobrowski and marine biologist-turned-songwriter Dorota Szuta, Ulvang’s partner.

According to Ulvang, Heavy Gus was born out of a desire to break out of the limitations of the folk genre and play around with new styles.

“It is a breath of fresh air to come from folk bands and lean into our grungier sides,” Ulvang said. “We combined the project as we all moved to separate deserts and the dry air sure changes up the writing styles.”

The trio released their first album “Notions” last August and audiences can expect to hear dreamy, sandy tunes with soft garage undertones that still give a slight nod to the members’ folksy origins.